Ill. man bitten by K-9 awarded $200K

By Frank Main The Chicago Sun-Times

A Cook County jury has awarded $200,000 to a man who was bitten in the scrotum and leg by a police dog in northwest suburban Streamwood.

Rodolfo Rivera, a landscaper, was at a birthday party near his home in 2006 when troublemakers crashed it, said his attorney, Lawrence Jackowiak. The Rivera family called police, and more than eight officers responded, Jackowiak said. Officer Alexander Vanderlinden allegedly kicked Rivera to the ground while police talked to people at the site. Then Vanderlinden's dog bit Rivera, Jackowiak said. The wounds required stitches, he said.